Pirates' Hearts
by ChocolateChipCookie25
Summary: Takes place after AWE. Elizabeth stays on board the Pearl with Jack, and they sail off together in another adventure.
1. A New Crew Member

NOTE: I had a Sparrabeth story on here called Two Peas, but deleted it on account of I had put up a chapter twice, and the file that had the right one was deleted, so sadly, that story is no more. Hopefully, this one will do good. Enjoy! :)

Will Turner had become the new Captain of the Flying Dutchman, and would only have one day ashore every ten years, but he was happy knowing that he would have his father right by his side. He and Elizabeth Swann had ended their romantic involvement while on the voyage to rescue Captain Jack Sparrow from the Locker. He had seen the kiss between them, and knew right then that it was over. Elizabeth had explained to him that the kiss was in order to distract Jack, so she could handcuff him to the mast as Kraken bait. Will had been shocked by that, but he still knew that it wasn't meant to be. Especially after Elizabeth confessed that she started to develop feelings for Jack after he was taken.

Luckily, after the battle, Will and Elizabeth had made up as friends, and she had promised him that in ten years she would meet him so that he would have somebody. Jack had reluctantly agreed. No, Elizabeth hadn't told Jack her feelings for him yet, but Jack hardly spoke to her after he was rescued. She had tried to explain her side, and apologize, but Jack had just sent her off or would ignore what she was saying. Before he left, Will asked Elizabeth if she was sure she wanted to stay on the Black Pearl, and she had said yes. Captain Barbossa had found a new ship of his own and had left the Pearl, and he and Jack were no longer enemies.

Elizabeth knew that Jack could drop her off at any port he wanted, or worse, try and get revenge against her, but he didn't. She had asked if she could stay on as a crew member, and he had surprised her by saying aye, she could. But she would have to pull her weight on board ship, and she wasn't going to get special privilages just because she was a woman. Unfortunately, that also included sleeping arrangements. If she didn't stay below decks with the rest of the crew, then she would either have to find her own area to sleep, or sleep on the deck. The main cabin was his since he was captain of the ship. Elizabeth had found a blanket and a pillow in a trunk and decided to sleep on a hammock in a large closet. It wasn't being used, but it was big enough to hang a hammock, and that's where she would sleep. It was certainly better than sleeping with a bunch of dirty, disgusting men whose snores could wake the dead. It wasn't very comfortable, and Elizabeth couldn't move around much, but it was better than nothing.

One day while Elizabeth was securing some rope, she was surprised to find Jack standing right behind her.

"Swann! A word in my cabin."

Elizabeth cringed. Not at the tone of his voice, but by the fact he referred to her as "Swann." Not "Miss Swann," not "Elizabeth," not "Lizzie," not "Love," not "Lass," just "Swann."

She put the pile of rope down and followed Jack to his cabin. The last time she had been in here was when she was being held captive by Barbossa. It didn't look much different now except for a few things. The black curtains were gone, and replaced by dark brown ones. Jack sat down behind his desk and motioned for Elizabeth to sit in the seat across from it. She did.

"Swann, 'm afraid I must talk to you about your current sleeping arrangements. That will not do. We're going to need that closet to store some supplies we'll be picking up in Tortuga, so you will have to find some place else to sleep."

That wasn't such a huge loss. But where could she sleep? She knew she was to be treated like the rest of the crew, but sleeping below deck with those men was simply out of the question.

"However," Jack continued, "I have found a solution. You may bring your hammock into my cabin, and I will sleep in it and let you have my bed. There's a screen I can use so I won't see you undressing and you won't see me. Does that sound like a fair deal?"

At this, Elizabeth's eyes widened. The bed sure looked comfortable, and she knew that Jack wouldn't try anything. If he wanted to have a tumble with one of the strumpets in Tortuga, he would take them to an inn, probably.

"That sounds wonderful, Captain Sparrow. Thank you."

Jack nodded his head and motioned for Elizabeth to get back to work. She stood up and headed for the door, but then stopped, and turned back to Jack.

"Jack... I really am sorry."

Before he could reply, she was out the door.


	2. A Gift for Jack

NOTE: Thanks for the reviews! :) Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

Elizabeth went into town, hoping to buy a gift for Jack. She had a little money on her, and she wanted to buy him something to show her appreciation for everything that he had done for her. And Will. He didn't have to let Will stab the heart, and he certainly didn't have to take her with him when they escaped from the Flying Dutchman, or agree to let her stay on the Black Pearl as a crew member, or let her have his bed, but he did. He truly was a good man, and Elizabeth didn't know how many times she apologized for what she did, and was willing to try anything just to get Jack to forgive her.

What Jack liked, she wasn't so sure. They had stopped at Tortuga, and while everyone else was getting drunk, Elizabeth decided to go shopping. She went into a shop that was selling all kinds of baked goods. Surely, there must be something she could pick out that he would like. All they had on the ship so far was stale bread, hardtack, and rum. There was a dirty man standing behind the counter with rotten yellow teeth.

"Evening, lass. What will it be?"

"I'm not sure. Do you have any recommendations?"

"Ah, yes, indeed! I have two, actually. One is a delicious chocolate cake covered in strawberries, and the other is a coconut flavored cake made with real coconuts' milk! One shilling a piece."

"I'll take the coconut, please."

"Excellent choice!"

Elizabeth laid her chilling on the counter, took the box and left the shop, and headed straight back for the ship. She had no desire to get drunk tonight, and Jack had said he would be coming back early. Why, she wasn't so sure. Tortuga was Jack's favorite place to be right after the sea, so she didn't know why he would want to come back so soon. Oh, well. If he wanted her to know, he'd tell her. She climbed the ladder that led up to the ship, and spotted Cotton. He was on watch.

"Good evening, Mr. Cotton. Is Captain Sparrow back yet?"

Cotton motioned with his finger towards Jack's cabin.

"Thank you."

Elizabeth went below and knocked lightly on Jack's cabin door.

"Come in!"

Elizabeth opened the door, and walked in, finding Jack standing by the window, looking out at the water. He wasn't wearing his coat, his hat, his effects, or even his boots. Just his shirt and pants.

"Good evening, J- Captain Sparrow. I brought you something from town."

Jack turned and looked at Elizabeth, then at the box, and then back to her.

"Oh?"

"Yes. I hope you like it."

They both walked over to the desk where Elizabeth set the box down. She tried to pull the string off, but couldn't get it.

"Allow me."

Jack took out his dagger and used it to cut off the string, and open the box. He hated the admit it, but he liked what Elizabeth brought him. It sure smelled good.

"It's a coconut cake. It- it reminded me of the time we were on the island together. It's made with real coconut's milk."

"Thank you, lass."

Elizabeth couldn't help the bright smile that lit up her face. Maybe he did forgive her, after all.

"You're welcome. It was my way of thanking you for everything you've done for me. As well as another apology."

Jack sighed, and looked her deep in the eyes.

"Luv, 'm not angry with you for what you did. I understand why you did it at the time. I was... well... _annoyed, _but no longer. Who wouldn't be, right? But you didn' have to do anything, for I was planning on staying behind, anyway."

Elizabeth felt better that Jack wasn't angry with her, but Jack telling her that he had planned on staying on his own, made her feel even guiltier. She ruined his chance of letting him go down with dignity.

"Oh, Jack. I-I didn't know. I was just so afraid. I was selfish. What a did what a rotten, disgusting thing to do. I'm no better than-"

"A pirate," Jack said, a huge grin on his face.

"I'm being serious."

"I know you are."

There was a pause. Elizabeth looked like she wanted to cry.

"Don' beat yourself up over it, 'Lizabeth. 'tis over and done with. You made up for what you did by bringing me back. Plus, remember what I said to you when we were on our way to rescue Will from Barbossa and break the curse? I had said that I admire someone who's willing to do whatever's necessary, and when Gibbs and the others left without me, I said they did what was right by them. As did you."

"But it wasn't right, Jack."

Jack sighed. "Alright, fair enough, it wasn't. But it wasn't right for me not to tell you that I had a debt to pay, or that the Kraken was only after me. I did a lot of selfish things on that journey, that 'm not proud of. Bloody deserved to be fed to the Kraken."

"You did not! I don't care what you did, you didn't deserve to be chained to your ship alone and helpless. You may forgive me, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to forgive myself."

Jack surprised Elizabeth by taking her chin in his hands. She felt herself shiver at his touch. Whenever Will touched her like that, she had never felt a shiver.

"Elizabeth, 'm going to do something right now, an' I don't care if you agree with me or not, savvy?"

Elizabeth nodded her head, yes, and her eyes widened when Jack leaned forward and kissed her softly on the lips. Her knees buckled, and she almost fell to the floor. Jack laughed, and helped her stand up.

"I take it William was not a good kisser."


End file.
